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January 08, 2012

shepherd's pie alton brown

For no apparent reason, Dick requested shepherd's pie. I don't remember when I last made it, so I went straight to Alton Brown on the Food Network web site for a recipe. Alton has never let me down. He came through again. The marriage of chicken broth, rosemary, and thyme... amazing flavor! Since the dish was rather spur-of-the-moment, I used ingredients on hand. This meant subbing ground beef for lamb which doesn't seem right. It is shepherd's pie, afterall. Next time.

2 carrots, peeled and diced (Normally I use unpeeled carrots, but the two that lay hidden in the bottom of my fridge’s crisper drawer needed some grooming.)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 ½ lbs ground lamb

1 tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

2 tsp 1 tbsp tomato paste

1 cup chicken broth

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce Bragg liquid aminos

2 tsp freshly chopped rosemary leaves (I used 1 tsp dried rosemary.)

1 tsp freshly chopped thyme leaves (I used ½ tsp dried thyme.)

½ cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

½ cup fresh or frozen peas

Directions:

Peel the potatoes and cut into ½-inch cubes. (I used scrubbed, unpeeled potatoes.) Cook in a pan with a little water until fork tender, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the filling. Sauté the onion and carrots in oil until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and stir to combine. Add the lamb (or beef), salt, and pepper and cook until the meat is thoroughly cooked and slightly browned. Sprinkle the meat with flour and toss to coat. Stir in the tomato paste, chicken broth, Worcestershire (or Bragg liquid aminos), rosemary, and thyme. Add the frozen veggies and simmer and simmer 10 to 12 minutes until the sauce is slightly thickened and the carrots, corn, and peas are tender but not mushy. Meanwhile, drain the potatoes in a colander and then return to the saucepan. (I use just enough water so that it has just barely evaporated when the potatoes are cooked through leaving no water to drain.) Mash the potatoes and then add the half-and-half (or milk), butter, salt, and pepper and continue to mash until smooth. Stir in the yolk (if using) until well combined. Top the meat filling with scoops of mashed potatoes. (There are just enough potatoes to make eight mounds using an ice cream scoop.) Spread the potato mounds with a spatula, starting around the edges to create a seal to prevent the mixture from bubbling up or leave the scoops as is. Bake in a 375° oven for 25 minutes or just until the potatoes begin to brown. Cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. (We just dug in.)

Comments

shepherd's pie alton brown

For no apparent reason, Dick requested shepherd's pie. I don't remember when I last made it, so I went straight to Alton Brown on the Food Network web site for a recipe. Alton has never let me down. He came through again. The marriage of chicken broth, rosemary, and thyme... amazing flavor! Since the dish was rather spur-of-the-moment, I used ingredients on hand. This meant subbing ground beef for lamb which doesn't seem right. It is shepherd's pie, afterall. Next time.

2 carrots, peeled and diced (Normally I use unpeeled carrots, but the two that lay hidden in the bottom of my fridge’s crisper drawer needed some grooming.)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 ½ lbs ground lamb

1 tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

2 tsp 1 tbsp tomato paste

1 cup chicken broth

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce Bragg liquid aminos

2 tsp freshly chopped rosemary leaves (I used 1 tsp dried rosemary.)

1 tsp freshly chopped thyme leaves (I used ½ tsp dried thyme.)

½ cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

½ cup fresh or frozen peas

Directions:

Peel the potatoes and cut into ½-inch cubes. (I used scrubbed, unpeeled potatoes.) Cook in a pan with a little water until fork tender, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the filling. Sauté the onion and carrots in oil until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and stir to combine. Add the lamb (or beef), salt, and pepper and cook until the meat is thoroughly cooked and slightly browned. Sprinkle the meat with flour and toss to coat. Stir in the tomato paste, chicken broth, Worcestershire (or Bragg liquid aminos), rosemary, and thyme. Add the frozen veggies and simmer and simmer 10 to 12 minutes until the sauce is slightly thickened and the carrots, corn, and peas are tender but not mushy. Meanwhile, drain the potatoes in a colander and then return to the saucepan. (I use just enough water so that it has just barely evaporated when the potatoes are cooked through leaving no water to drain.) Mash the potatoes and then add the half-and-half (or milk), butter, salt, and pepper and continue to mash until smooth. Stir in the yolk (if using) until well combined. Top the meat filling with scoops of mashed potatoes. (There are just enough potatoes to make eight mounds using an ice cream scoop.) Spread the potato mounds with a spatula, starting around the edges to create a seal to prevent the mixture from bubbling up or leave the scoops as is. Bake in a 375° oven for 25 minutes or just until the potatoes begin to brown. Cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. (We just dug in.)